Though publicly the delay is attributed to environmental
cleanup, privately, sources say the project has been delayed by a dispute over
financing.

When Red Bull purchased the MetroStars in 2006, the company
also bought a 50 percent stake in a $100 million stadium AEG planned to
develop. But when the energy drink company pushed for additional suites and a
360-degree roof to cover all the seats, the price rose to $150 million.

The $50 million difference left AEG and Red Bull at odds over
who should cover the extra cost, a matter that sources say still hasn’t been
resolved.

Sakiewicz denied that finances had anything to do with the
delays at Red Bull Park, saying the delays were exclusively tied to two “hot
spots” discovered at the site where oil had been dumped years before. He said
there were also three layers of concrete to excavate, which slowed things down.

“We found little surprises along the way,” Sakiewicz said.
“You do as much investigation ahead of time as you can, but once you take the
building down and get under the foundation, you never know.”

The contractor, completing one of the largest environmental
cleanup projects in New Jersey history, found the oil, and it was a lengthy
process to collect it and truck it off site, Sakiewicz said. The entire site is
about 85 percent clean now.

The cost of cleaning the site rose to $13 million because of
the oil, double the initial projection, Sakiewicz said. The city of Harrison
and the state are paying for the cleanup as part of their $100 million
commitment to finance infrastructure improvements.

The stadium opening could be pushed back further if the next
winters are severe and hinder construction efforts, he said.

“These are all things unforseen in the construction process,”
Sakiewicz said.

Red Bull New York’s front office sold season tickets this year
in part by saying buyers would receive “priority rights for seats in … Red Bull
Park, scheduled to open in 2008.”

De Grandpre said a delay of the project would not change
season-ticket holders’ priority status. “We’ll make sure anyone who’s bought
into the stadium or its opening is rewarded,” he said.

A delay means the team likely will remain in Giants Stadium
for another season. The team has an option on its lease there for 2008 with the
New Jersey Sports Exposition Authority. The reported $3 million lease will
increase 5 percent if the team returns next year.